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[color=darkblue][/color A week ago today I turned 65 and am now qualified for Medicare. That is a wonderful thing because my health insurance was outrageous and would be even worse as of January 1 if I had to keep it.
On Monday I saw my internist after a panel of blood tests. The results weren't as bad as I anticipated. Still, she was not happy to see that I had gained some weight, that my blood pressure was still not under control, that my vitamin B12 levels could be higher and that my cholesterol needs some work. The latter is not that far out of whack, and I know it could be controlled by diet and exercise, if only I would get with the program and should some consistency. The tests for Vitamin D had not come back yet, but I know I need to work on that too and would feel a lot better if I did.
Basically, I need to undergo a major lifestyle change in order to get to where I should be, and it's not going to be easy due to my lifelong lack of discipline and tendencies toward procrastination. I live alone, so there are no valid excuses.
Exercise is important but is going to be a problem due to my bad hip, weak thigh and painful knee -- all on the left side. Sciatic pain sometimes makes walking and sleeping difficult, and because of my range-of-motion problem in my hip, I can't do the piriformis stretch that helps to relieve it. Some days are better than others, but the cold and damp days are killers.
I have not really been spending much time on this site, but I want to start being more involved, accepting some challenges, logging my food and exercise, journaling my experience and feelings as I undertake this journey to improved health and wellness.
I'm going to start small and then get going in earnest after the holidays. Starting now to set some goals for 2014, plan some menus and ways to be accountable, etc.
Lately my social calendar has been way too full this month, and I have been tired almost every day. I know that if I would eat better, I would feel better and would have less inflammation and pain in my body. I look forward to both feeling and looking better in 2014, as well as being able to get into some clothes I like that I'm unable to wear for the time being.
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